The incident happened at 100 North Holliday St. around 2:30 p.m. and ended with a black Acura striking the city employee before flipping in front of City Hall. The victim was taken to Shock Trauma, where he later died.

Co-workers identified the victim as Matthew Hersl, a 28-year city employee working as a supervisor in the finance department. They said Hersl, 45, was walking home after work when he was struck.

Police said the incident started on southbound Interstate 83, when a state trooper near Pleasant Street said he saw the Acura driving around 100 mph. The trooper turned on the lights of his cruiser so he wouldn't get rear-ended, and as the Acura slowed, the trooper followed the vehicle off the highway onto Pleasant Street, police said.

The Acura then came down Holliday Street and attempted to turn onto East Lexington Street when it hit a tree, a pole and Hersl before flipping over, police said.

Maryland State Police, who are investigating the crash, said it was not a police pursuit. They said Wednesday that video on the trooper's dashboard camera confirms the trooper's account that he was not chasing the driver of the Acura.

The video indicates the trooper's car was a block or two behind. Trooper Zachary Mills told investigators he saw the car fish tail, but not the crash. He was at a red light at Holliday and Saratoga streets when it happened. An eyewitness also supports that account.

"They didn't get on the scene immediately. If he was here, the state trooper was down at this block right here. They had a good amount of space in between them. It wasn't like he was right on his tail. He wasn't," witness and Hersl's co-worker, Alex Lovelist, said (story continues below).

Friends and family said Hersl was a creature of habit. He used the same crosswalks usually around the same time of day traveling to and from work.

Hersl's brother, Stephen Hersl, a retired firefighter, placed flowers and a candle on the spot where his brother died. He said his brother didn't drive because he didn't like traffic and thought drivers were dangerous.

"He was always directing me out in traffic saying, 'Watch out' and, you know, 'You got to be careful of the drivers,'" Stephen Hersl said.

Witnesses said the crash was horrible.

"(The car) ran off the intersection onto the pavement, and it hit the electrical pole and the tree, and it flipped over and knocked everything out. It was crazy," witness Caroline Wilson said.

"(The driver) hit the tree, and the car flipped over, and I just instantly started screaming because I knew it was my supervisor (that got hit). I saw him as he crossed the street. He was in the crosswalk. He was hit as he was about to step up on the curb," Lovelist said.

Police said the driver of the car attempted to get out and run, but a homeless man and a pastor helped subdue him until Mills got there and arrested him.

"I looked in the car to see the driver, and he was trying to crawl out the other side," witness Cesar Lithgow said. "The guy was trying to get out of the car, and he was going, 'It's not me, let me go.' And I said, 'Hold on a minute.' And I grabbed him by his dreadlocks, put him to the ground, stepped on his neck and said, 'You're not going anywhere.'"

The driver was only identified by police Tuesday as a 43-year-old Baltimore man. He was treated for minor injuries at a hospital and released. Charges against him haven't been announced yet.

Meanwhile, Maryland State Police said Mills, a six-year veteran of the force, was headed to the Golden Ring Barrack in Baltimore County and decided to drive through the city to get there when the incident happened.

Friends remember Hersl as leader, avid O's fan

Friends of Hersl told 11 News he was a beloved community leader in the Little Italy neighborhood in which he lived. A memorial has been set up outside his home.

"It's beyond any tragedy that I can imagine, that he leaves us this way," said Hersl's friend, Mel Stachura, who was on a newly-formed neighborhood association with Hersl. He said Hersl was on the safety committee, where he fought to keep crime out of the area and to keep the neighborhood clean.

"I assure you that wherever you walk around in Little Italy tonight, or in the next few nights, people will be standing on corners talking about Matt Hersl," Stachura said.

Hersl was also a huge Orioles fan. His friend, Ed Lauer, said they were part of a group of guys called "The Ball Hogs" who went to every pregame batting practice to catch home run balls.

"Matt was one of the best at that. This was something he really enjoyed. He would catch them and give them away. He spread a lot of love around," Lauer said. "I'm just so saddened. It's heartbreaking. I'm going to miss him very much."

Viewing and funeral information for Hersl is as follows:

Visitation: Thursday, April 11 from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday, April 12 from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. at the Joseph N. Zannino Jr. Funeral Home at 263 S. Conkling St. in Baltimore.

The funeral takes place Friday, April 12 at 11 a.m. at St. Leo the Great Catholic Church at 227 S Exeter St. in Baltimore.